Balto: Faith of the Wolf, Book 1: The plague
by Mojotheomegawolf
Summary: What happens when a new virus hits Nome? What if dogs and wolves were the soul survivors of the world? And what can all of Dingo's strange dreams mean? Rated T for violence, language, and disturbing content. Balto & Dingo.
1. Chapter 1

Balto: Faith of the Wolf

Book 1: The Plague

Chapter 1: Third Door to the Left.

Balto was so deep in the pit of sleep that he didn't hear Jenna, who had been franticly yelling his name for the past few minutes. She ran inside the trawler to the den and skidded to a halt three feet in front of her mate. Her urgency turned into panic.

"Wake up!"

Balto jumped under his blanket and sat up throwing it off. He looked around until his vision cleared onto Jenna. He yawned and stretched.

"Good morning, beautiful," he said with a smile.

Jenna gave no emotion except for a deep fear hidden behind her eyes.

"What's the matter," Balto asked.

"It's Rosie's father," she said seriously.

"What happened," Balto asked concerned.

"I don't know; but all I can tell is that he's very ill." She paused to think then continued. "It started last night as just a headache. Now , he's so sore and weak, he couldn't even get out of bed on his own, and by now has coughed so much that his throat is bleeding. One minute he has a burning fever and the next, he can't get warm." she was frantic.

Balto stood up. "How's the rest of the family," he asked worried for their safety.

"They're fine, but I'm sure how much longer Rosie's father can hold on."

Balto flattened his ears. "Have you taken him to the doctor?"

Jenna was slightly offended by the question and rolled her eyes. "Of course we took him to the doctor; he's there now." Jenna stood and turned looking back over her shoulder.

"Come on," she ordered.

Balto stood and Jenna began a full out sprint down the deck and over the side of the trawler. Balto caught up to Jenna on the ground and came shoulder to shoulder with her. The pair kept the same pace until they were at the front door to the hospital. They walked through the open door and saw Rosy waiting in the main room with her head down and her legs crossed. She heard the clicks of claws on the floor and looked up; tears glistened in the light from her eyes down under her chin.

"We can't go inside," she said to the pair of dogs.

Jenna padded over and pushed her head under Rosie's arm. Rosy petted her dog on the head and hugged her around the neck.

"Oh, Jenna; I'm so scared," she said wiping the tears from her eyes.

Jenna licked away one of the tears that escaped and rolled down Rosie's right cheek. Rosy sniffed. Balto padded up behind Jenna and sat looking in the direction that Rosie's father's scent was coming from. He darted his eyes at the source then back at Rosy. Balto stood up and gave Jenna the 'I'll be right back' look. Jenna turned to him and mouthed 'what are you doing?' Balto jerked his head down the hallway and turned to go. He would sneak over to the door and listen; maybe even get a look at Mr. Calaway. He strolled down the hall way and paused at the third door to the left. He pushed his ear flat to the door and held his breath for the best chance of hearing through the thick wood.

"…never seen anything like this before in my life," a young woman was saying.

"Try giving him a vaccine for the Measles; the sores on his face neck and chest need to be cleaned and bandaged…" This was an elderly sounding man.

"Sores," Balto muttered to himself, "Jenna said nothing about…" He turned and walked out the main door. Jenna gave him a funny look, but had nothing to say.

Balto rounded the corner outside finding, to his delight, that the room Mr. Calaway had a window that wasn't obstructed by curtains. Balto placed his forepaws onto the windowsill and looked inside. Mr. Calaway was unconscious; the nurse must have left shortly after Balto leaving just an elderly doctor and Mrs. Calaway in the room. Balto gazed upon Rosie's father and took notice to the pale white skin, the shaking under the covers, the coughing, and more sores on his face that he could count. On top of it all, a few had blood running slowly out. The doctor had busied himself with trying to clean them out with gauze. The window was pretty well sealed so little sound came through, but when Mr. Calaway began foaming at the mouth and thrashing about violently, a muffled "…NURSE!" made it through faintly.

The doctor placed his ear to Mr. Calaway's chest. His heart was sputtering out and he was having trouble breathing. The doctor sent the shocked Mrs. Calaway out of the room and threw the cover off of Mr. Calaway's chest and thrusted down with both hands, one covering the other. He pushed forcefully seven times then placed a low-tech breathing agent over the patient's mouth. The nurse busted through the door.

"Get his pulse!"  
>The nurse seized Mr. Calaway's wrist with one hand and placed her middle and index fingers on the veins below his palm. "No pulse doctor."<p>

The doctor continued the same procedure this time with a determined, "Come on damn it!"

"Still no pulse," the female nurse pleaded.

The doctor did the procedure once more then looked over to the nurse who shook her head. The doctor removed his hands and took his glasses from his face rubbing his fingers over his closed eyes. The nurse was sobbing to herself.

"Time of death, 8:30 A.M," he said crossing himself, and then placed the cover Mr. Calaway's head. He turned and walked out the door shutting it behind him.

Balto couldn't see, but he could imagine Mrs. Calaway breaking down into tears and falling to her knees. Balto closed his eyes and dropped his head, pushed off the sill, and turned to walk back inside the hospital. Rosy had left to use the bathroom and Jenna was alone pacing nervously back and forth. Balto walked through the door and caught Jenna's eye with his head low.

"How is he," she asked worried. Balto raised his head to her voice and gave no answer but dropped his head again. "No." Jenna hung her head and began weeping.

Rosy came out of the bathroom down another hallway and sat down. Jenna picked up her head and looked over to Balto. Balto gave Jenna the look to say, 'don't tell her, not yet,' and nuzzled Rosy under the cheek.

The doctor walked into his office and sat down heavily in his chair. That was the fastest viral fatality he'd ever seen; and above all, it had no name, no history, no origin. He dropped his head and buried his face into his hands and let out a stressful exhale. He suddenly felt extremely tired and slightly achy. He called his replacement from down the hall; relieving himself for the day and walked out to his car, stumbling as he went. His shaking hands caused him to fumble his key to the ground and he cursed. He picked it up and engaged the engine, and then five minutes later he was home. He stumbled out of his car and into his house where his wife and two children helped him to bed.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2 It Won't Be Long Now.

The virus quickly spread from the doctor to his family. The house once filled with the joy and noise of a family now sat silent. The occupants of the house still remained and soon people began noticing ravens and crows flocking around the house and disappearing into any opening that led inside. Three concerned neighbors opened the door and the ebony birds exploded in agitated caws flocking out in a swirl of feathers also revealing the four bodies lying close together picked half to the bone. The neighbors bolted out the door to get help leaving the third to fend off the flesh hungry birds returning moments later with over a quarter of the town.

- That did it. The virus quickly spread from the deceased family to the onslaught of gawkers resulting in almost half the population of Nome being overrun by illness. There was no stopping it now. In its short life span it had evolved into the most diverse and adaptable disease mankind had ever faced. It could survive frigid cold or blistering heat and was now in the very air they breathed; even making its way into the water they drank. It could be passed on by direct contact, or by simply breathing at another person. It was noticed that animals, even insects, began to die of the same virus and pretty soon, there were as few animals as were there people. So far it had a kill rate of 100% and most infected humans were dead in a matter of 48 hours. Animals, on the other hand, had an average life span of three days; plenty of time to spread it around. In five days, the majority population was either dead or dying and news reports clicked in stating that the disease had spread into Canada and the upper part of North America.

Strangely enough, though, the only living things in these infected areas that didn't seem to be catching this virus were of the canine genus. Doctors tried to understand why, but caught the virus themselves before they could get very far.

- Africa, Europe, The Middle East, South America, Asia; o body was safe from the disease now nick-named 'Silent Wraith.' The population of the world was reduced to zero in a little over two weeks following the first case in Nome. Birds and fish had spread Silent Wraith over every inch of the planet; even to the most remote locations of both Arctics. Its last human host was a European man named Balute Klemmer. The last animal was an albino axis buck. As the final hosts ceased to live, so did Silent Wraith. The world now remained quiet saving the saddened howls of heartbroken dogs as they mourned the deaths of their beloved masters.

- Nome was littered with abandoned vehicles, garbage, and the sickening sight of half decayed bodies of animals and people. The smell of rotten flesh was inescapable and it invaded the nostrils of every dog that remained in this otherwise lifeless city. Many dogs, including Jenna, couldn't deal with the pain of losing their humans and decided to die with them. The remaining dogs gathered around the middle of town that night for a meeting. Every dog there was relying on Balto to lead them. He fit the bill better than any other, for not two years ago; he'd saved the town from the Diphtheria epidemic. So why not lead them now? Balto took his place on a stack of crates and gazed upon the two dozen huskies and mutts that mixed together in a mass of colors and voices that fought for an opinion.

Balto spoke, "Okay everyone, let's settle down."

The muttering ceased and all eyes were now fixed on Balto.

He took a breath and continued; "Now I'm sure that most, if not all of you, are aware of our situation. We have very limited food here in town and little water that is drinkable. If we stick around here we'll all starve." He paused and ran his eyes over the silent crowd. "So, it is with great sadness that I suggest that our best chance for survival would be to carry what we can on sleds and leave town."

The dogs below him began murmuring amongst themselves again.

"I know this may seem a bit rash, but if we stay here, we'll all die of starvation or wind up in a civil war, killing each other for resources."

A large black and white husky with a faded gold collar spoke out; "If we leave town, we'll all be picked off one by one by wolves. We need to stay here in the safety of or home."

A few dogs nodded their heads in agreement.

"Steele, we don't even have enough food to last us until the end of the month," he paused and turned his attention back to the others, "I can understand your concern for the wolves, but let me tell you of my plan. We can journey to the coast and rendezvous with my daughter. She's smart and strong. There, we can set up a threshold and collect food from the main land…"

Steele interrupted.

"Your daughter has been living with the wolves for, what, over a year now? She and her pack would take one look at us and we'd be dead before we even knew what happened." Steele looked to his right, then to his left.

Balto was becoming agitated, "I know my daughter, Steele, she'll greet us with open arms. Now, her pack may be slightly hesitant to let in a bunch of dogs, due to our history of bloodshed, but they won't be a problem. Alue is now the alpha of her pack and won't stand for any disloyalty."

"I agree with Steele," said a light grey husky, "wolves are treacherous, violent abominations. They'll take one look at us and eat us all alive. After all, they will have run out of food as well."

Balto glared, "I can understand your reasons for not wanting to abandon your home, but it's our only option."

For the first time, a copper colored male husky spoke, "Please listen. Has my dad ever steered us wrong before? I think that if he says leaving is the best option, then I'll follow his lead without question."

Balto smiled and Kodiak stood up and walked over, looked up at his dad, then sat on the side beneath him. Ten more dogs (some of them from Kodi's mail team) stood and lined up at his side. The rest of the dogs (a quarter of them mutts) stayed where they were.

"If you follow his lead you'll be dead before you make ten miles." Balto's group stayed put. "I can see where this is going," Steele said, "Any of you who wish to stay will come with me and follow under my command. "

Thirteen dogs rose and settled next to Steele. Balto looked down at the one remaining dog.

"Dingo, it's your choice. Any decision you make will not change my love for you as my son."

Dingo smiled then rose and settled again at Steele's right side. Balto looked over his ten followers.

"Gather any food you can find from your homes and pile it up in front of the post office. I'll arrive later with two sleds. Bring only food and any water you may have in containers. We leave at dawn. Any of those who are late will be left behind, got it?"

The ten dogs nodded and dispersed leaving Balto alone on the crates. He gazed down at Steele and his followers.

"If any of you change your minds, you know where to find us."

He jumped down and padded off with the memories of the Calaway family, Boris, Stella, Jenna, and the two polar bears running through his mind. He decided there that it was best to forget about them.

**A/N**

Sorry about the long update. Here's chapter 2. Chapter 3 will be along shortly.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3 Departures

Dingo kicked and rolled violently in his sleep giving off troubled moans.

"_Who's there," Dingo called frightened._

"_Don't be afraid, young Dingo. I wish to speak to you." This strange voice was echoing into his ears and circled through his head. But where did it come from? He tried desperately to find the source, but in vain._

"_How do you know my name," Dingo finally asked._

"_All of these questions shall be answered when the time is right. For now all I can tell you is…"_

Dingo pitched over on his side and felt something poke into his side. He slowly blinked his eyes and found that the dog he'd bunked down with was now standing over him.

"Keep it down would you? You talk so loud when you sleep," this dog whispered.

"Sorry," Dingo replied sheepishly. His roommate turned and walked back to his sleeping place and lay down.

Dingo lay his head back down and shut his eyes, immediately being pulled back down into the abyss of sleep.

- Two hours before the sun rose, Balto arrived at the post office with two sleds in tow, one behind the other fastened together by a short length of rope. On the first sled lay two sets of harnesses, both of them for five dogs. Balto stopped and spit the rope out of his mouth and relieved the guard who sat under a dim yellow light cast off from a streetlamp with the mess pile behind him. Balto looked over the pile of food and water finding it quite a bit smaller than he'd anticipated. None the less, he sent the guard to fetch the others. The guard nodded and turned to go, but was stopped again by Balto.

"I never got your name," he said with a smile.

The young black husky turned back, "My name is Dakota."

He turned and padded off into the darkness, leaving Balto alone with the mess pile. He looked it over carefully, taking mental notes. Ten minutes later, the young Dakota returned with the other nine dogs, which were surprisingly bright eyed for this hour. Balto gave them a short briefing and then had the food sorted out into groups and the water was placed off to the side. After the food was sorted, Balto helped load it onto the two sleds that were now no longer bound together by rope. He wanted numbers of how much of each item they had, so he stationed a dog to count them up as they were loaded; Balto would take this information and store it away for later. The counter padded over to the sacks of dried kibbles and counted them up.

"Three ten pound sacks of kibbles," he called then seized a bag in his jaws and assembly lined it to the sleds where another two dogs laid them out on the wood. The same process would be used for the other items as well.

"One twenty pound sack of jerky." He called two dogs over and they picked it up and carried it to the sled.

"Two boxes of frozen bacon." Both were passed down to the sleds.

"Eight and one-half bags of mixed freeze-dried fruits and such." He paused and went over to the water containers and took a guess. "About five gallons of fresh water."

Balto stored away the information he'd just received and began figuring rations that would last the five day trip. By the time the food was all loaded and the harnesses attached to the sleds, the sun was just peeking over the horizon. Five dogs harnessed into each sled and Balto sat in the lead position of one team while Dakota led the other. They broke out the sleds and began the walk out of Nome. When they arrived at the tree line, they stopped and took a last look at their home. Steele and his fourteen followers sat in a line to see Balto and the others off.

Balto called out, "Good luck! If you all need help, you know where we'll be."

He turned to go but was stopped by, "Wait!"

Balto turned and saw Dingo running up to him. Balto unharnessed and met his son half way. They nuzzled and separated.

"I wish you the best," Balto said, then turned and padded back to the sled calling over his shoulder, "I love you son."

Dingo, who'd made it back to his group called out in response to his father. Balto snaked back into his harness and the two teams disappeared into the trees. Steele and the other fourteen dogs dispersed in their own direction, looking for any resources left in this ghost town.

**END BOOK ONE**

**A/N**

Kinda ironic to be writing a story about a plague then get sick yourself isn't it? I know this is a short chapter and this is much too short to really be a book, but whatever. Book two will be coming out today as well so keep an eye open.


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